It's not a Toomah! ~ Powerful Ways for Students to Reflect

Teach Thought 30 day blogging challenge ~ Day 19 ~ Name 3 powerful ways students can reflect on their learning

Borrowing straight from Marzano's Element 13: What do I typically do to help students reflect on their learning?

1. Reflective Journals - a little too complex for too many of my 2nd graders in the beginning of the year (asks them to think too deeply too soon).

But this doesn't mean we don't do this ever. It means we build up to it by developing our higher-level and more sophisticated thinking skills, and then introduce students into when they are individually ready.

Because I'm a natural motivator and whole-child developer, I keep getting asked to teach younger and younger students. 

Being a bigger guy and former football player,  I truly feel like Arnold in Kindergarten Cop sometimes :-p

a. What predictions did you make about today's lesson that were correct? Which were incorrect?

b. What information in today's lesson was easy for you to understand? What was difficult?

c. How well do you understand the major ideas we are studying?

d. What did you do well today?

e. What could you have done better today?

2. Exit Slips

*I use this for homework. Students are told to go home and share their class notes from the day with their parents, answering the following questions: 

a. What do you consider the main ideas of today's lesson? 

- Desired Effect: Student lists the critical information re the learning goal/learning targets

b. What do you feel most and least certain about?

c. Do you have specific questions about today's lessons?

d. With which aspects of today's classwork were you successful?

3. Knowledge comparison

*We do this in class. I call it our JAM Journal (Journal in afternoon and morning.....JMA doesn't sound as cool as JAM!)

a. What is your level of knowledge at the end of the day compared to what it was at the beginning?